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Rep. Roy announces legislation to block funding to the ‘morally bankrupt,’ anti-Israel U.N. Human Rights Council

February 9, 2021

WASHINGTON — On Tuesday, Rep. Chip Roy (TX-21) announced that he will introduce legislation to block taxpayer dollars from funding the United Nations Human Rights Council in light of President Joe Biden's plan to rejoin the corrupt, anti-Israel organization.

Members of the UNHRC include countries with abhorrent human rights records such as China, Russia, Cuba, Venezuela, Eritrea, Pakistan, and Somalia. And while UNHRC regularly ignores atrocities committed by many of these nations, it consistently and disproportionately targets the State of Israel.

For example, from 2006-2019 the council adopted one resolution on Venezuela, nine on Eritrea, nine on Iran, 12 on North Korea, and 32 on Syria, but also issued 85 condemning Israel. During the same period were zero resolutions targeting China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Cuba, or Pakistan, countries that repeatedly violate the rights of women, religious and ethnic minorities, journalists, and political dissidents.

"The United Nations Human Rights Council is a morally bankrupt organization that bolsters some of the world's most oppressive regimes. By rejoining the corrupt UNHRC, President Biden is granting legitimacy to an organization that shields some of the world's worst human rights abusers from accountability and systemically targets one of our closest allies, the State of Israel," said Congressman Roy. "President Trump was right to withdraw and defund this so-called ‘human rights council.' I will fight to ensure not a single dime of taxpayers' dollars goes to this corrupt organization; Unfortunately, the Biden administration is set to reverse another of the Trump administration's foreign policy accomplishments and rejoin the UNHRC."

The Trump administration withdrew from the council in 2018 and withheld about $7.5 million from the U.N. regular budget each fiscal year.

Last week, Congressman Roy led 44 of his House colleagues in a letter urging President Biden to keep America out of the UNHRC.

The legislation will be introduced later this week. Text of the bill is available here.